Turkestan-Siberia Railway
Encyclopedia
The Turkestan–Siberian Railway (commonly abbreviated as the Turk–Sib, Russian: Турксиб) is a broad gauge
railway that connects Central Asia
with Siberia
. It starts north of Tashkent
in Uzbekistan
at Arys
, where it branches off from the Trans-Caspian Railway
. It heads roughly northeast through Shymkent
, Taraz
, Bishkek
(on a spur) to the former Kazakh
capital of Almaty
. There it turns northward to Semey
before crossing the Russia
n border. It passes through Barnaul
before ending at Novosibirsk
, where it meets the West Siberian portion
of the Trans-Siberian railway
. The bulk of construction works was undertaken between 1926 and 1931.
was aired as early as 1886, but it was supplanted by that of a more practicable line between Tashkent and Orenburg
in the Urals. On 15 October 1896 the Verny town
duma
set up a commission to examine the feasibility of building a Turkestan–Siberia Railway. It was expected that the line would facilitate transport of cotton from Turkestan to Siberia and cheap Siberian grain from Russia to the Fergana Valley
. An eastern branch would enhance Russia's military and economic presence on the Chinese border.
In 1906 the Russian imperial government decided to finance construction of the first section, between Barnaul
and Arys
. A team of Russian engineers made a detailed survey of the steppe and semi-desert regions the railway was expected to cross. On 21 October 1915 the northern section linking Novosibirsk
and Semipalatinsk as the Altai Railway. The missing Arys–Pishpek
–Tokmak
section, officially known as Semipalatinsk Railway, was left to be built by a French-financed Russian-managed private railway consortium. The Great War put an end of this project.
After the Bolshevik Revolution construction work was suspended for a decade, and the 140 kilometres (87 mi) long Semipalatinsk–Ayaguz
line, built in 1918–19 by the White Russians
on the initiative of Admiral Kolchak, was demolished for no apparent reason. The remaining 1442 kilometres (896 mi) of railway were constructed with great fanfare as part of the First Five-Year Plan
. Much of the railway was built with gulag
prison labour, including ethnically Finnish and Estonian populations deported on Joseph Stalin
's orders from Ingria
.
Regular passenger service was finally established between Semipalatinsk and Ayaguz on 10 May 1929. The Turksib was completed on 21 April 1930. The first locomotive that ran from Tashkent to Semipalatinsk is installed as a memorial in Almaty
.
by Kazakhstan's main north-south line, which serves Karaganda
, Astana
and Petropavl
ovsk, on one of the main Transsib routes.
In 1990, Aktogay
station, roughly midway between Almaty and Semey, became an important junction. Lines from there run east, connecting at Dostyk with China
's Lanxin railway
Line (toward Urumqi
, Lanzhou
, and heartland China); and west, to Balqash
and Karaganda.
Russian gauge
In railway terminology, Russian gauge refers to railway track with a gauge between 1,520 mm and . In a narrow sense as defined by Russian Railways it refers to gauge....
railway that connects Central Asia
Central Asia
Central Asia is a core region of the Asian continent from the Caspian Sea in the west, China in the east, Afghanistan in the south, and Russia in the north...
with Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
. It starts north of Tashkent
Tashkent
Tashkent is the capital of Uzbekistan and of the Tashkent Province. The officially registered population of the city in 2008 was about 2.2 million. Unofficial sources estimate the actual population may be as much as 4.45 million.-Early Islamic History:...
in Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....
at Arys
Arys, Kazakhstan
Arys , is a town in South Kazakhstan Province of Kazakhstan. The population of the city was reported in 2007 as 37.6 thousand; together with the district administratively subordinated to the city's government, it was 64.7 thousand....
, where it branches off from the Trans-Caspian Railway
Trans-Caspian railway
The Trans-Caspian Railway is a railway that follows the path of the Silk Road through much of western Central Asia. It was built by the Russian Empire during its expansion into Central Asia in the 19th century. The railway was started in 1879, following the Russian defeat of Khokand...
. It heads roughly northeast through Shymkent
Shymkent
Shymkent , formerly known as Chimkent , is the capital city of South Kazakhstan Province, the most populated region in Kazakhstan. It is the third most populous city in Kazakhstan behind Almaty and Astana with a population of 629,600 . A major railroad junction on the Turkestan-Siberia Railway, the...
, Taraz
Taraz
Taraz , is a city and a center of the Jambyl Province in Kazakhstan. It is located in the south of Kazakhstan, near the border with Kyrgyzstan, on the Talas River...
, Bishkek
Bishkek
Bishkek , formerly Pishpek and Frunze, is the capital and the largest city of Kyrgyzstan.Bishkek is also the administrative centre of Chuy Province which surrounds the city, even though the city itself is not part of the province but rather a province-level unit of Kyrgyzstan.The name is thought to...
(on a spur) to the former Kazakh
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...
capital of Almaty
Almaty
Almaty , also known by its former names Verny and Alma-Ata , is the former capital of Kazakhstan and the nation's largest city, with a population of 1,348,500...
. There it turns northward to Semey
Semey
Semey , formerly known as Semipalatinsk and Alash-kala , is a city in Kazakhstan, in the northeastern province of East Kazakhstan, near the border with Siberia, around north of Almaty, and southeast of the Russian city of Omsk, along the Irtysh River.-History:The first settlement was in 1718,...
before crossing the Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n border. It passes through Barnaul
Barnaul
-Russian Empire:Barnaul was one of the earlier cities established in Siberia. Originally chosen for its proximity to the mineral-rich Altai Mountains and its location on a major river, the site was founded by the wealthy Demidov family in the 1730s. In addition to the copper which had originally...
before ending at Novosibirsk
Novosibirsk
Novosibirsk is the third-largest city in Russia, after Moscow and Saint Petersburg, and the largest city of Siberia, with a population of 1,473,737 . It is the administrative center of Novosibirsk Oblast as well as of the Siberian Federal District...
, where it meets the West Siberian portion
West Siberian Railway
The West Siberian Railway is a stretch of the Trans-Siberian Railway crossing the Omsk, Novosibirsk, Kemerovo, Tomsk, and Altai regions of the Russian Federation as well as a portion of Kazakhstan. The company is headquartered in Novosibirsk and operated by the Russian Railways...
of the Trans-Siberian railway
Trans-Siberian Railway
The Trans-Siberian Railway is a network of railways connecting Moscow with the Russian Far East and the Sea of Japan. It is the longest railway in the world...
. The bulk of construction works was undertaken between 1926 and 1931.
Construction history
The idea of a railway between Siberia and Russian TurkestanRussian Turkestan
Russian Turkestan was the western part of Turkestan within the Russian Empire , comprising the oasis region to the south of the Kazakh steppes, but not the protectorates of the Emirate of Bukhara and the Khanate of Khiva.-History:-Establishment:Although Russia had been pushing south into the...
was aired as early as 1886, but it was supplanted by that of a more practicable line between Tashkent and Orenburg
Orenburg
Orenburg is a city on the Ural River and the administrative center of Orenburg Oblast, Russia. It lies southeast of Moscow, very close to the border with Kazakhstan. Population: 546,987 ; 549,361 ; Highest point: 154.4 m...
in the Urals. On 15 October 1896 the Verny town
Almaty
Almaty , also known by its former names Verny and Alma-Ata , is the former capital of Kazakhstan and the nation's largest city, with a population of 1,348,500...
duma
Duma
A Duma is any of various representative assemblies in modern Russia and Russian history. The State Duma in the Russian Empire and Russian Federation corresponds to the lower house of the parliament. Simply it is a form of Russian governmental institution, that was formed during the reign of the...
set up a commission to examine the feasibility of building a Turkestan–Siberia Railway. It was expected that the line would facilitate transport of cotton from Turkestan to Siberia and cheap Siberian grain from Russia to the Fergana Valley
Fergana Valley
The Fergana Valley or Farghana Valley is a region in Central Asia spreading across eastern Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. Divided across three subdivisions of the former Soviet Union, the valley is ethnically diverse, and in the early 21st century was the scene of ethnic conflict...
. An eastern branch would enhance Russia's military and economic presence on the Chinese border.
In 1906 the Russian imperial government decided to finance construction of the first section, between Barnaul
Barnaul
-Russian Empire:Barnaul was one of the earlier cities established in Siberia. Originally chosen for its proximity to the mineral-rich Altai Mountains and its location on a major river, the site was founded by the wealthy Demidov family in the 1730s. In addition to the copper which had originally...
and Arys
Arys, Kazakhstan
Arys , is a town in South Kazakhstan Province of Kazakhstan. The population of the city was reported in 2007 as 37.6 thousand; together with the district administratively subordinated to the city's government, it was 64.7 thousand....
. A team of Russian engineers made a detailed survey of the steppe and semi-desert regions the railway was expected to cross. On 21 October 1915 the northern section linking Novosibirsk
Novosibirsk
Novosibirsk is the third-largest city in Russia, after Moscow and Saint Petersburg, and the largest city of Siberia, with a population of 1,473,737 . It is the administrative center of Novosibirsk Oblast as well as of the Siberian Federal District...
and Semipalatinsk as the Altai Railway. The missing Arys–Pishpek
Bishkek
Bishkek , formerly Pishpek and Frunze, is the capital and the largest city of Kyrgyzstan.Bishkek is also the administrative centre of Chuy Province which surrounds the city, even though the city itself is not part of the province but rather a province-level unit of Kyrgyzstan.The name is thought to...
–Tokmak
Tokmak
Tokmak may refer to one of the following:*Tokmak, Ukraine, a city in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, Ukraine*Tokmak, Uzbekistan, a city in Uzbekistan*Tokmok, a city in Kyrgyzstan, often also spelt Tokmak...
section, officially known as Semipalatinsk Railway, was left to be built by a French-financed Russian-managed private railway consortium. The Great War put an end of this project.
After the Bolshevik Revolution construction work was suspended for a decade, and the 140 kilometres (87 mi) long Semipalatinsk–Ayaguz
Ayaguz
Ayagoz or Ayakoz City of regional submission in Kazakhstan, administrative centre Ayagoz districts of the East Kazakhstan area. It's located in eastern Kazakhstan, till both parties of the proceeding river Ayagoz. The population is over 40,000 ....
line, built in 1918–19 by the White Russians
White movement
The White movement and its military arm the White Army - known as the White Guard or the Whites - was a loose confederation of Anti-Communist forces.The movement comprised one of the politico-military Russian forces who fought...
on the initiative of Admiral Kolchak, was demolished for no apparent reason. The remaining 1442 kilometres (896 mi) of railway were constructed with great fanfare as part of the First Five-Year Plan
First Five-Year Plan
The First Five-Year Plan, or 1st Five-Year Plan, of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was a list of economic goals that was designed to strengthen the country's economy between 1928 and 1932, making the nation both militarily and industrially self-sufficient. "We are fifty or a hundred...
. Much of the railway was built with gulag
Gulag
The Gulag was the government agency that administered the main Soviet forced labor camp systems. While the camps housed a wide range of convicts, from petty criminals to political prisoners, large numbers were convicted by simplified procedures, such as NKVD troikas and other instruments of...
prison labour, including ethnically Finnish and Estonian populations deported on Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
's orders from Ingria
Ingria
Ingria is a historical region in the eastern Baltic, now part of Russia, comprising the southern bank of the river Neva, between the Gulf of Finland, the Narva River, Lake Peipus in the west, and Lake Ladoga and the western bank of the Volkhov river in the east...
.
Regular passenger service was finally established between Semipalatinsk and Ayaguz on 10 May 1929. The Turksib was completed on 21 April 1930. The first locomotive that ran from Tashkent to Semipalatinsk is installed as a memorial in Almaty
Almaty
Almaty , also known by its former names Verny and Alma-Ata , is the former capital of Kazakhstan and the nation's largest city, with a population of 1,348,500...
.
Connectivity
Years after the Turksib was completed it was joined at ShuShu, Kazakhstan
Shu , formerly known as Chu , is a city in Jambyl Province of Kazakhstan, the administrative center of Shu District.The city is located on the river of the same name, and is populated by approximately 35,000 people.-Transportation:...
by Kazakhstan's main north-south line, which serves Karaganda
Karaganda
Karagandy , more commonly known by its Russian name Karaganda, , is the capital of Karagandy Province in Kazakhstan. It is the fourth most populous city in Kazakhstan, behind Almaty , Astana and Shymkent, with a population of 471,800 . In the 1940s up to 70% of the city's inhabitants were ethnic...
, Astana
Astana
Astana , formerly known as Akmola , Tselinograd and Akmolinsk , is the capital and second largest city of Kazakhstan, with an officially estimated population of 708,794 as of 1 August 2010...
and Petropavl
Petropavl
Petropavl is a city on the Ishim River in North Kazakhstan Province of Kazakhstan close to the border with Russia, about 261 km west of Omsk along the Trans-Siberian Railway. It is capital of the North Kazakhstan Province...
ovsk, on one of the main Transsib routes.
In 1990, Aktogay
Aktogay, East Kazakhstan Province
Aktogay is a town in Ayagoz District, East Kazakhstan Province of Kazakhstan and major railway hub of Turkestan-Siberian Railway.Aktogay is located in Balkhash-Alakol lowlands, close to Balkhash lake. The Ayagoz river’s mouth is located nearby Aktogay. The climate is continental. Summer is hot...
station, roughly midway between Almaty and Semey, became an important junction. Lines from there run east, connecting at Dostyk with China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
's Lanxin railway
Lanxin railway
The Lanzhou−Xinjiang Railway or Lanxin Railway is the longest railway in northwestern China. It runs from Lanzhou, Gansu, through the Hexi Corridor, to Ürümqi, in the Xinjiang. It is Xinjiang's only rail link with the rest of China...
Line (toward Urumqi
Ürümqi
Ürümqi , formerly Tihwa , is the capital of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China, in the northwest of the country....
, Lanzhou
Lanzhou
Lanzhou is the capital and largest city of Gansu Province in Northwest China. A prefecture-level city, it is a key regional transportation hub, allowing areas further west to maintain railroad connections to the eastern half of the country....
, and heartland China); and west, to Balqash
Balqash
Balkhash is a city of 66,724 inhabitants at Lake Balkhash, Kazakhstan.Balkhash was founded in 1937 as an industrial city centred around the mining and smelting of copper, and presently copper is still exploited there...
and Karaganda.